Has anyone ever added wood veneer to existing garage door?

[travis howe]

Was wanting to upgrade the look of our home...was wondering if anyone had simply added veneer to the outside of existing doors?

Hints, tips, advise?

Thanks!

[george wilson]

That sounds like a thoroughly BAD idea. No doubt there will be BIG problems with veneer exposed to the weather. You will end up buying a new door in the end,so why not just buy an appropriate door to begin with? Save yourself the work,and the subsequent grief.

P.s.: That much veneer won't be cheap,either. save the money for a better door.

[Mike Henderson]

+1 on what George said.

There's no clear finish which will stand up outside so even if you could do the veneer, it would be a real chore to maintain.

Get a commercial garage door that looks the way you want it to look.

Mike

[If you're going to paint it, you wouldn't have to veneer it (just paint what you have), so I assume you want to see the veneer, which implies a clear finish.]

[Chris Padilla]

First, what kind of a garage door? Is it a wooden one to begin with? One piece? Sectional?

I agree w/George...it sounds like an awful lot of work and I'm not sure it would last very long but depending on your situation, it could be doable.

Certainly, they make glues that are supposed to withstand the elements but one immediate worry I have is how you intend to thoroughly clamp any applied veneer. It must be done very well to last.

Next, is what KIND of veneer? For this situation, I'm not sure the commercial stuff would last very long. You'd almost want to shop cut your own veneers so that you could make them thicker. I sliced up a buncha walnut for a tansu I built so I could get thickish 1/16" veneers from it. It was A LOT of work slicing veneers and sanding them down.

[Chad Stucke]

Travis
When I was a kid one of the barns needed a new roll up door some of the fiber panels gave out . We just bought a few sheets of 1/4 luan w exterior glue ripped them to about 1/4" less than the panel and nailed on after knocking out the rest of the panels. The door was lighter and less insulated but after painting it was there about 20 years. The fix was about 7 sheets of luan and a gal of paint.
It might work for you
Chad

[Dick Bringhurst]

I agree with Mike and George. I did however replace the plywood on my garage door with new stuff. I needed 9' long pieces. It was exterior ply and was painted. Dick B.

[Van Huskey]

What kind of door is it?

Plus I don't think he is talking about glueing on thousands of dollars of book matched burl.

Are you talking about something like the thin luan mentioned above?

[Larry Edgerton]

Don't use veneer but I do put solid wood on garage doors all of the time. It is almost standard procedure on the homes I work on. We start with a Heavy duty masonite flat door, fit the pieces, cut on an appropriate angle at the seems so that it drains out, and reassemble.

When finished you have to put bathroom scales on each side of the door when closed, see what the scales read, and contact a garage door company to get springs that match the weight of the door as modified.

[Richard Dragin]

For a short term fix it's feasible but economically might not make sense. Luan panels and paint for a cosmetic fix isn't a bad idea but the other post was about a barn.

[travis howe]

It's a steel panel door... sounds like too much effort for what i would get out of it...suspected such. thanks all

[Richard Dragin]

I just covered two large metal gates with the same material we are doing the decking with. Stainless Tech screws and an oil finish, I laid them horizontal, it looks incredible.